Oblivion
by Merlinfan26
Summary: Merlin's magic is taken away like in the series finale, but Arthur's life and Camelot's fate isn't hanging in the balance. So everyone cares for a dying Merlin and Arthur will do whatever it takes to save his manservant and best friend. He'll even use magic. Hurt/comfort and lots of sick!Merlin. Chapter 2 is updated with the correct one! I am SO sorry!
1. Chapter 1

**Because I can't get enough of sick Merlin and protective Arthur...I will update my other fics like The Dark Tower, so don't worry! I couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if Merlin had lost his magic and had gotten that sick when Arthur's life and the future of Camelot wasn't at stake.**

**Prologue**

_Something slithered into Merlin's room. It was one of Morgana's snake. The snake __moved towards the bed where Merlin was sleeping. It slithered up towards Merlin's body and bit him in the neck. Merlin gasped, but then just moaned and rolled over..._

"Merlin?" Gaius called as he headed towards the boy's room, confused. "Merlin, have you forgotten the time? You're an hour late for work!" He opened the door and gasped as he saw the state Merlin was in. Merlin was still laying in bed, but his skin was deathly pale and he was shivering. But sweat still trickled down his forehead.

"Merlin...my boy, what happened to you?" Gaius hurried over to the young man. Merlin moaned, but was too weak to even open his eyes. He continued to shiver and perspire at the same time. Gaius felt his forehead and his eyes widened.

"You have a temperature, Merlin, you are not going into work today," he decided. Merlin just moaned in response. Worry flickered in Gaius's eyes. Intense worry. The only thing to do at the moment, though, was to get the fever down. So he grabbed a bucket and filled it with ice cold water.

* * *

It was time for a meeting at the round table. Everyone waited for Gaius and Merlin to show. Arthur tapped his hand impatiently at the table.

"I'm sure there's a good reason," Gwen tried to reassure him. Gwaine nodded.

"It's not like Merlin to be late," he added.

Arthur sighed.

"All right we'll start the meeting without them."

An hour later Gwen said that she wanted to see Gaius and Merlin and make sure they were all right. Leon insisted on escorting her.

She knocked at the door, but there was no answer. Slowly she opened it.

"Gaius?" Gaius appeared from Merlin's bedroom.

"Your highness! I am sorry, I didn't hear you knock."

"Please, Gaius, you know you can still call me Gwen," Gwen said gently, with a concerned smile. "There was a meeting at the round table today..."

"Of course, of course," muttered Gaius. "Please tell the King I am truly sorry for not making it, but Merlin..."

Concern fell over both Gwen and Leon.

"What's wrong with Merlin?" Gwen asked. Gaius heistated, and then answered.

"He is very ill, your...Gwen."

"What kind of illness does he have?" Leon asked. Gwen looked horrified at the thought of Merlin being ill.

Gaius sighed.

"That I do not know.."

"I want to see him," Gwen decided."

"My Lady, that is not a good idea...he could be highly contagious-"

"He's right, you know," Leon said.

"I don't care, he'd see me if I were that sick,"argued Gwen. She stepped towards Merlin's room and Gaius and Leon hurried after. Both Leon and Gwen gasped when they saw Merlin. Merlin was breathing heavily, his feet in a bucket of ice. He was shivering and moaning and his skin was deathly pale.

"I'm trying to bring down his fever," Gaius explained. Leon could see how worried he was.

"What do you think it is?" Gwen asked. She sat next to the young servant. Merlin's eyes flickered open and shut.

"I don't know," Gaius answered honestly and she could hear the worry in his voice. She grasped Merlin's and and placed the wet cloth that was on a nightstand over his forehead.

"Gwen," he moaned.

"sh," she murmured gently, trying to hide her fear. She had never seen Merlin in this state. "Don't speak."

"Arthur," Merlin said and then managed to fall back to sleep while breathing heavily.

After helping Gaius as much as they could both Leon and Gwen left with troubled expressions.

"If Gaius can't find out what it is," Leon asked. "How will he be able to cure it?"

"I don't know," Gwen answered truthfully. "But I know Arthur well let Gaius do whatever it takes to save his servant."

Leon nodded.

Gwen arrived in their bedchambers.

"So? What's Merlin's excuse this time? Was he at the tavern?" Arthur asked, annoyance in his voice. "Honestly right now the only real excuse would be if he was dying..I'm getting fed up with his constant tardiness..." He noticed Gwen flinch at his words, and frowned. "What? What is it?"

"I...the part where you said he was dying..." Gwen felt tears in her eyes and Arthur stared at her in utter shock and horror.

"What is it?" He repeated, and suddenly felt sick at the words he had used. He could tell something was wrong, by the way Gwen looked.

"Merlin's very ill," Gwen said as a tear rolled down her cheek. "Gaius doesn't know what's wrong with him, but he has a high fever and he can barely open his eyes and barely speak. He has such difficulty breathing and his skin is deathly pale and cold, and yet he is constantly perspiring " She was shaking when she spoke. "Seeing him like that was horrible, Arthur. He was in such pain, we all could tell, but we didn't know how to stop the pain. We didn't know WHERE he was hurting, just that he was..." She was unable to finish and Arthur stepped forward to hug her, feeling guilty for his poor choice of words.

"I don't know how to help Gaius, he is so worried about Merlin," sobbed Gwen. "And Merlin...he's done so much for us, Arthur. How can we just sit back while he's this sick and not DO something?"

"We won't just sit back," Arthur promised. "First part is to move Merlin into one of the rooms in the Castle, Gaius as well."

Gwen nodded.

"Then to give Gaius permission to do _whatever _it takes to save Merlin." Arthur's voice was completely serious. Gwen gave another nod, this time slowly.

"What about...magic?" She dared to ask. Arthur froze and frowned as he thought about the situation and what could happen if they did nothing. They could very easily lose Merlin. He shuddered when he spoke.

"Yes, and we'll use magic if we need to. As a last resort."

Gwen sighed in relief.

"Thank you Arthur."

Arthur nodded.

"You're right about Merlin, he has done so many things for us. I won't let him die."

Gwen smiled and kissed him.

"I knew there was a reason I married you."

Arthur kissed her back.

"Merlin will be cured," he added. "I promise you." She nodded and worry filled Arthur's eyes as he hugged her, determined to do _whatever _it took to save Merlin's life.

**Should I continue?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow, thanks for the reviews!**

Within the next few hours Merlin was moved into one of the castle's many spare rooms. He entered the room which occupied Gaius, Merlin, Gwen and Gwaine. Leon had followed behind Arthur. **  
**

Arthur stared in sickening horror as he saw how pale Merlin looked. Merlin kept on moaning as he thrashed on the bed, as if in pain, as sweat trickled down his forehead. His legs were in a bucket of ice and Gaius was rubbing them with cold water. An uncomfortable feeling crept towards Arthur and made him shiver. It felt like Merlin was on his death bed.

"How is he?" He asked as he stepped closer. The old physician looked up and sighed.

"No change, sire, but the fever has gone down."

Arthur nodded, grim faced.

"Good, I guess that's good."

He felt unsure of what to do and Arthur never liked to feel that way, to feel _this_ helpless.

"Is there any other physicians that might be able to help?" He asked. Gaius frowned.

"I do not think so. First I need to find out what's wrong with him."

Arthur stiffened at that thought.

"Do you think it's poison?" He asked darkly, remembering the last time Merlin had been poisoned. And it was because of him, too.

Gaius shook his head slowly.

"No, it strikes me more of an illness."

Arthur nodded as he continued to study Merlin.

A pain washed over him as he watched. Suddenly Merlin started to cough and Arthur's whole body went rigid as he watched. And then he saw blood appear and his face grew paler.

"Is that blood?"

Gaius nodded, grim faced, as he wiped Merlin's mouth and raised the boy's head to get him to drink water.

"He started to cough up blood early this morning, while we were moving him."

Arthur bit his lip. He didn't like this, at all.

He wished it was him instead. Merlin didn't deserve this fate.

It was an hour later when Gaius suggested that everyone let Merlin get some rest. But Arthur refused to budge.

"Arthur?"Gwen questioned. Arthur sighed.

"I'm staying with him, through the night."

Gaius hesitated.

"Sire he might be extremely contagious..."

"I don't care," said Arthur simply. He stared at the the old man and saw the concern in his eyes. "I'll be all right, Gaius. You should rest now, you've earned it."

Again Gaius paused in hesitation.

"Will you..."

"Yes, I will contact you if there is a problem."

The others started to leave, but Gwaine pulled up a chair next to Arthur.

Arthur frowned.

"Gwaine, what are you doing?"

"You can't stay in this room unguarded, sire," he stated calmly. "It's not safe."

Arthur glanced over at Gwen who smiled. They were both aware of what Gwaine was doing, and why. He nodded.

"Very well, you may stay."

Gwaine looked relieved not to be ordered away. Finally everyone had left and the three were alone for a very long night.

Arthur sat there and watched as Merlin twisted and moaned. Gwaine watched the king with fascination and a new kind of respect.

"Never thought I'd see a king stay up all night and sit on the bedside of a mere servant."

"I'm not like most kings," said Arthur softly. Gwaine nodded.

"True, that is very true."

"And Merlin is much more than a mere servant."

"That is also true."

"He'd do the same for me," finished Arthur, almost defensively.

Gwaine nodded for a third time.

"Again, all true. But still, it's unusual..."

Arthur sighed. He didn't like this side of him being exploited and made out to be wrong. He couldn't help how he felt.

"Is that so wrong?"

Gwaine shook his head.

"No, sir, it's not. It's very refreshing. You are the first royalty I have wanted to follow. The first king I would give my life for."

Arthur looked at Gwaine, startled. He didn't realize how adamant Gwaine's hatred towards kings and princes's had been.

"Before I met Merlin I had hated all royalty " Gwaine explained. "But Merlin had shown me how different you are. It took me a while, but I started to see it, and I am still seeing it. In moments like this, where you would care for a servant until sunrise-and not worried about getting sick."

Arthur swallowed as he thought about losing Merlin and what that would do to him and to everyone.

"Thank you,but some of this is selfish. I do not want to lose Merlin."

Gwaine nodded.

"No one would, that is not selfish. You do not want to lose him because he is your friend, right? Much more than a servant?"

Arthur slowly nodded.

"That is correct." He had never called Merlin a friend outside of Gwen's presence, but all the knights had already guessed it.

Gwaine smiled.

"Then it's not selfish at all, to want your friend to live."

And with that they lapsed into silence while Arthur placed a cold cloth onto Merlin's forehead and they waited for morning, which seemed to very far away, to arrive.

_I hope it wasn't too crappy and Gwaine wasn't OOC! _


End file.
